Tag: ferret

“We all have a sneaky side. It is a necessary skill for our survival. Whether you have to be the one who is sneaky, or be the one able to spot others in their sly ways, the art of deception is not to be taken for granted. Smoke, mirrors, and sleight of hand all have their place; the real trick is knowing when and where to use them”– Animal totem tarot

Ferrets are a domesticated form of the European polecat and it’s likely that they have been domesticated for at least 2,500 years. Historically they were used for hunting, and whilst they still are, they are more likely to be kept as pets these days.

Their name comes from the Latin furritus, meaning little thief as they like to steal small objects such as hen’s eggs. Over time, their name has developed into a verb, as in to ferret out something. This likely reflects their sneakiness and their ability to move in and out of tricky places. They are adept at moving in tight, twisted burrows, can bend 180 degrees and can change direction very quickly. They move seamlessly between overground and underground, making them masters of both realms.

Their spines are incredibly flexible and supple making ferrets seem long, floppy and melty. This makes them adorable but also means they can slip and slide through tunnels like water. But make not mistake, they use this ability to sneak up on prey with extreme stealth. They are fast and efficient predators who can kill with a single, powerful bite. This animal is all about fluidity and strength, flexibility and precision. Slink stealthily and then attack! Be the unsuspecting threat, take people unaware and make an impact! The ferret’s presence goes unnoticed until the damage is done. I’m not suggesting you go out and cause damage, but you can still shock and wow people and this has extra power if no one sees it coming. Go out and be fierce!

Despite being powerful predators, ferrets have a wonderfully fun side. I read something which described them as the clowns of the animal world. They are funny, curious, mischievous and playful. They are full of energy, they are trouble makers, escape artists and they are intelligent. This inspires me to be more curious, more adventurous and more inquisitive. They will literally tunnel into anything, but we can take this as a prompt to dig into a topic or get our teeth stuck into learning something.

Ferrets have a variety of body language in their repertoire including dancing when they are happy, wrestling which is usually a playful activity and their war dance. This involves frenzied sideways hops, leaps and is not actually an incitation to war, but an invitation to play. It often comes with a soft clucking noise and ferrets extend their communication options with an array of vocalisations. They ‘dock’ or ‘cluck’ when excited, hiss when scared, squeak softly when upset and screech if they are afraid, in pain or angry.

As you might have gathered, ferrets are very high energy animals so it’s probably not surprising that they spend up to 20 hours a day asleep! They are most active during dawn and dusk and when they are sleeping, it’s thought that they experience more REM sleep than a lot of other pets, meaning they are more likely to dream. I wonder what ferrets dream about…

It wouldn’t be a blog post of mine without an animal sex fact. In the case of the ferret, it’s that the male has a hooked penis. Once he penetrates a female, they can’t separate until he releases her.

Since domesticated, ferrets have been bred for fur and hunting, also known as ferreting. They were sent down holes to chase rodents, rabbits and moles out of their burrows. In 1390 in England, a law was enacted limited the use of ferrets for hunting to the wealthy and high ranking families.

Other ways that we’ve used ferrets have also taken advantage of their ability to shimmy through tunnels. For example, they’ve been used to run TV cables underground, to run through parts of planes for Boeing and apparently to clean steel pipes of a particle accelerator.

As they have similar immune systems to us, they have been used in the development of vaccines and in testing flu medications.

And I can’t mention human ferret interactions without bringing your attention to ferret legging. It was apparently a popular sport amongst coal miners in Yorkshire and involves putting ferrets down your trousers and seeing who can stand the longest.

Ferrets are often vilified and underestimated, with people projecting ulterior motives onto them. If you are able to ferret out secrets, you may find that people don’t like it. They may feel vulnerable if you are able to see under the surface. Of course this doesn’t mean you should turn off your empathy, but it’s just worth being aware of it. If you are an empathetic person who can sense other people’s feelings, know that it might make some people feel unsettled. Also, as a side note, if you are very empathetic, remember you can and should set boundaries, you don’t need to feel everyone else’s stuff!

The way ferrets slip and slide through the world means they have been associated with magic at times and were thought to be witch’s familiars. Add to their stealth, the fact they are crepuscular, and you can also see why they have been associated with invisibility.

When it comes to mythology, there aren’t many ferret references that I could find, likely because they were domesticated animals, and because they overlap with weasels so it’s harder to find any stories or beliefs that are out there. That said, I did find that their fur was attached to an eagle feather to give the skill of alertness and ability to elude capture in some native American tribes. This comes from the ferret’s ability to move unseen, and to track and scout out enemies.

Many myths and stories seek to explain why an animal has a particular characteristic and for the ferret, we have a Cree tale to account for why it seems to be nervous. He is running and trembling because he is afraid he is being chased. This would certainly account for the high energy bursts!

“Modern scientists agree: virtually all the higher animals – including parakeets and pigeons – are occasionally involved with their own genitalia.”– Mels Van Driel

Lions, primates, bats, walruses, deer, zebra, sheep, warthogs, hyenas, whales, dophins, cats and dogs are just some of the animals that are known to masturbate. They may use their flippers, their tails, their feet or their mouth. They rub their nipples, grab their genitals, rub against inanimate objects and essentially employ all the methods than humans do.

Female ferrets use smooth stones and penguins literally get their rocks off on rocks. Female porcupines are quite creative – they grab a stick between their front paws then ride it like a broom. As they drag the stick around with them the jolting and vibrating stimulates them.

Male bats, male walruses and female hyenas engage in auto-fellatio – female hyenas have a phallus-esque clitoris. Orangutans make use of twigs and leaves whilst tortoises bang their penis against hard objects.

Deer rub their antlers on the ground and can take as little as 15 seconds to satisfy themselves. Cetaceans rub themselves against the ocean floor.

Male elephants suck on their penis with their trunk and females nibble the nipples between their front legs whilst striking their vulva with their tail.

Male marine iguanas who don’t have much chance of mating – or who may start mating with a female but are likely to get kicked off by another male before they’ve copulated – are known to masturbate whenever a female goes by. It’s thought that this is because by masturbating they speed up the time it takes to ejaculate and thus, when they do get a chance with a girl, they can do the deed very quickly, before they get kicked off.

Other theories about why animals masturbate include mismatched sex ratios within a population, stress relief, being lower down the rank and hence not having the chance to have sex and the fresh ejaculate theory. The latter is the idea that “masturbating clears out the old sperm faster and makes room for newer, healthier sperm. Healthier sperm equals healthier babies” (Verdolin).

And of course, animals may masturbate because they find it pleasurable.

“While scientists debate the evolutionary reason for masturbation, there’s no doubt that humans are not alone in their self-pleasure from time to time.”— Clara Moskowitz, LiveScience Senior Writer

With animals that are similar to us, it can be easy to imagine how they have stimulate themselves but you may be wondering about birds. I was. Most birds have a cloaca – an opening used for sex and for expelling waste – and male birds will bend their tails under an object – such as a toy – and rub their cloaca against it. Females also rub their cloaca against an object but instead lift their tail and back up onto the item in question.

There isn’t much research into masturbation in the animal kingdom at this point so much of this is based on observations, both in the wild and in zoos where obviously there is no guarantee that the behaviour is natural. Species in which studies have been carried out include primates, domestic animals such as horses and ground squirrels.

The ground squirrels study was suggested that male masturbation may act as a form of genital grooming. As saliva has antibacterial properties, masturbation may reduce their risk of catching an STD. It may also clean the reproductive tracts. But this is clearly an area that requires a lot more research!

Whilst this blog post is entirely a bit of fun and a way to discuss masturbation in a less taboo way, it has a second purpose. That is to dispel all those myths that we should only have sex to procreate because it’s what’s natural. If you’ve read any of my animal and sex posts, you’ll know that sex in the animal kingdom is diverse, interesting and uninhibited. Sex has evolved to be pleasurable for many species (although not all it must be added) in order for the species to continue and why wouldn’t we – humans and other animals – engage in something that makes us feel good?